Hardware is a volume business in which only a few can make real money. Either through royalties, e.g. ARM, or market dominance, e.g. Intel PCs. Samsung, HP, Dell, Lenovo, Huawei, Xiaomi, Asus, Acer, etc. ‘s hardware businesses are all in a very dangerous position. Their products no longer are differentiated through hardware features. Price reductions have become a race to the bottom in which there will be no winners. Google controls their key money maker.

IoT presents a new beginning in which hardware, software, services, cloud, data, etc. can become the secret ingredients that will make new billions for some. However I have had access to the IoT strategies of several and although I can not publicly share them, several big names are not doing great. In IoT you can do two things, you can try to become the new Apple or become a magnet for others to make money on top of your solution. Too many think they have Apple qualities but the truth is they don’t. If you are a senior executive at a big hardware empire that is starting to cripple, why don’t you reach out and discuss potential alternative strategies.